Donor Daddy
by StrongHermione
Summary: Years after the tragic, sudden loss of her husband, Hermione desires to have something they never got the chance to - a baby. With no husband or even the remote possibility of one, a colleague suggests she use IVF to conceive. An anonymous donor is the way to go - only once the baby is born, there is not much anonymity to be had. EWE? AU SS/HG
1. Chapter 1

_Disclaimer: Harry Potter is owned by JK Rowling et al. Any characters or locations you recognise are the intellectual property of these individuals and corporations. I make no money from the writing of this story._

 _This story was written for last year's SS/HG Prompt Fest using the following suggestion:_ Hermione uses a sperm bank to get pregnant. She later (either before or after the birth) discovers that Snape was the donor.

 _This is a three-part story detailing the lead-up and reaction to the birth of Hermione's baby. I will post each chapter over the next week. As I said, it was written last year, I am just getting around to posting it on this site now. I hope you enjoy it._

-oOo-

 **DONOR DADDY**

 **Chapter I**

 _April 23rd, 2004_

Hermione Granger put everything she had into holding back the tears that threatened to burst forth as the coffin containing her dead husband lowered itself into the ground. She knew she was only still standing upright due to the combined efforts of her brothers-in-law, Harry Potter and George Weasley.

 _'It's too soon, we had so much planned. How can you be dead? We never got to do even a quarter of the things we wanted to do. We never saw the Eiffel Tower by night. I never got to take that picture of you pretending to hold up the Leaning Tower of Pisa. We never got to throw a coin into the Trevi Fountain. We never had children…'_

As if to mock her pain, a plaintive cry from Harry and Ginny's newborn baby echoed over the cemetery grounds. Although he was quickly hushed, Hermione was reminded that this was a sound she would never hear; would never get to soothe. There was no living tribute to the love she had shared with her husband, her best friend and life-long supporter.

Ron was gone.

She was alone.

She would always be alone.

-oOo-

 _Four Years Later_

Prince Manor had once been a stately, well-kept home, brimming with class, teeming with riches and bursting with family. To look at it now one would think it had been abandoned for several decades and they would mostly be right. The Prince family had dwindled over the years and now there was just one descendant left. His magic alone, while powerful, was not enough to sustain all the elves that the family owned. Their magic had been declining over the years and all of them had resigned themselves to not being long for this world. When their Master died, so would they. They hoped he had several decades left in him. There had been that scare at the end of the war. On that fateful day there had been three Prince descendants fighting in the Final Battle and two of them had died early—one succumbing to a giant's foot and the other to a piece of falling rubble in the Hogwarts courtyard. This had left Severus Snape as the sole remaining heir to the Prince family. The elves had felt their magic shift over the course of several hours.

Then there had been _that_ moment when their last master hovered between life and death; swinging first one way then the other until finally the head elf felt strong enough to apparate to his master's side and stabilise him enough for the Healers to be able to work their magic and save him once and for all.

The former Headmaster had not been happy to know the sweet release of death had been denied to him. In his eyes he had nothing to live for so why should he not be allowed to be at peace finally? There followed several weeks of recovery followed by accolades and awards heaped on him by a grateful Wizarding government and public. He was happy to stand back in the shadows with the rest of the Order of the Phoenix while the Golden Trio was paraded in the most prominent position. Apart from Potter, Granger and Weasley, he was the only living member of the Order to receive the Order of Merlin, First Class, for his war efforts. His indiscretions were swept under the carpet under the auspices of being _'necessary to maintain his cover'_ and the stipend that came along with the award was enough for him to live on and pursue his own interests.

Much to the despair of the elves, he refused to set foot into Prince Manor. If he lived there, his magic would be able to charge the wards and thereby fuel the magic of the elves by association. He merely instructed them to do their best to keep the manor from completely falling into ruin and to keep his own small house clean. Other than that they were left to their own devices. The head elf continued to assign specific tasks to each elf and he personally took charge of the Master's house while keeping one or two of his former family duties as well.

It was one of these long-standing responsibilities that drew on his magic that afternoon. With a small pop, the elf appeared in the old family drawing room. The room had certainly seen better days; it was in a rather more dilapidated state than the rest of the manor. The tapestry that lined the walls however was of an ancient magic that transcended time and masters' wishes. The third Head of the Most Noble House of Prince had established the tapestry, infusing his own magic into it and tasking his own head elf to ensuring that every child born into the Prince family was identified and anointed with the family magic so that the line could live forever.

Marriages were not recorded on the tapestry; only births and the lineage he or she came from. As soon as the elf appeared in the room he knew why he would have been called there. He excitedly made his way directly to where his master's name sat at the end of the genealogy. A faint line had already embroidered itself from the name _Severus_ and black thread was already forming the new moniker. The elf watched intently as a name appeared on the ancient relic, that which the new mother had officially proclaimed. What confused the elf was that he had had no prior warning that this event was likely to occur. He knew his master was definitely not married and he was fairly sure he was not involved romantically with any witch either. The elf squared his shoulders. There was no doubting the magic. He had to see his master.

A new heir to the House of Prince had been born.

-oOo-

 _One Year Earlier_

"Healer Granger! Multiple traumas coming in! The Knight Bus crashed into the new Willis Building on Lime Street!"

Hermione jumped to her feet and wandlessly banished her half-finished cup of tea to the sink in the break room. "How did it crash into a building?" she asked.

"The exterior cladding they just started putting up blocks the previous arrival point in London. No bright spark in the Ministry checked it when the Muggles began constructing the building. The Obliviators are going to have a tough time sorting that one out!" the Medi-wizard speculated.

"That's not our concern," Hermione dismissed. "What injuries do we have?"

"One dead on impact; one with severe internal injuries—Healer MacMillan is already working on her in one; one severe head trauma, again already being worked on in three; a possible punctured lung along with multiple broken bones waiting in two; two serious concussions and an assortment of minor injuries. Everyone got sent here as a precaution," the Medi-wizard listed.

"Who is working on the head trauma?" Hermione asked.

"Healer Fitzgibbon," was the prompt reply. Hermione nodded; he was the specialist in that area as was Ernie MacMillan with the internal injuries.

"I'll take the punctured lung; continue with triage and get as many Healers down here as you can," Hermione said as they burst through the doors to the A&E section of the hospital.

"Yes, Healer Granger," the Medi-wizard acknowledged her instructions as they parted. Hermione hurried into room two noting immediately that her patient was not only suffering severe injuries, but was also pregnant. She made a mental note to discuss the omission of that piece of vital information with the Medi-wizard later as she called for one of the Trainees to page an Obstetrics Healer from upstairs.

After placing a containment spell around the womb of the mother-to-be, Hermione immediately set about determining the severity of her injuries. A Bubble-Head charm had already been applied to help the patient breathe. She checked the charm and praised the initial team for thinking to saturate the oxygen levels within it. With her wand, she began running scans, identifying specific injuries and listing various potions and spells that should be applied to the patient. She was just performing the tricky spell to remove the rib causing the puncture when the door to the room burst open to admit the Obstetrics Healer she had summoned.

Used to the fast pace and loud noises of the A&E, Hermione did not even flinch as another authoritative voice started barking instructions to the team and began attending to the baby still encased in its mother's womb. For anyone watching who was not familiar with how a trauma situation worked it would almost seem as though a power struggle were about to erupt but Hermione and the new Healer instructed the team together in such a way that each got the help they required at precisely the right time to help both their patients survive.

Three hours later, the two weary Healers entered the break room. Hermione flopped straight down onto a chair, exhausted from the number of Charms and spells she had used to first stabilise, then heal her patient. The other Healer, not having had to do quite as much work as Hermione, simply continuing to monitor the baby as its mother had various procedures performed on her, took it upon himself to make her a cup of hot, sweet tea and get a chocolate bar for her from the vending machine.

"Thank you, Malfoy," she said gratefully as she bit into the chocolate. She could feel the properties in the confectionery begin to work their magic on her.

"You did good work in there, Granger," he complimented her.

"Thank you again. So did you," she returned his praise.

"Any day we can save the patient is a good day."

"You said it."

They sat in comfortable silence for a while, just sipping their tea and trying to overcome the tiredness. As colleagues they had long overcome their childhood animosity and their division caused by the war. They were not friends, exactly, but they were friendly whenever work threw them together as it had today. One of the newly appointed Healers dragged herself into the room and went to her locker. She had been on the team assigned to the lesser injuries due to her inexperience. Hermione and Malfoy were surprised that she seemed so tired given the relatively easier time she had had.

"I was supposed to be home an hour ago!" she complained. "My daughter is going to be grumpy all evening because dinner is late."

"Wouldn't she be fed by your husband, or whoever is looking after her?" Malfoy asked.

"No, Healer Malfoy, she would not. I feed her dinner, no one else," the Healer said irritably.

"What if we had taken longer? Healer MacMillan is still going on his patient; you could have been making your daughter wait for hours!" Hermione said in confusion.

"You don't understand, Healer Granger, you have no children, or a husband for that matter. It is important to spend quality time as a family each night. It is hard enough with this job let alone when something like tonight interrupts the routine."

Hermione and Draco shared an incredulous look. "If it's routine you're looking for then this is not the place for you," Hermione declared. "I've lost count of the number of times an eight-hour shift stretches to twelve or more. It's a very regular occurrence."

The Healer looked worried. "Once a month?" she asked.

Malfoy laughed. "More like twice or three times a week! Your family better get used to not seeing you very often."

"In that case I would suggest those of us without families to go home to ought to pick up the slack," the Healer said airily. She grabbed her bag and cloak from her locker and slammed it shut. "Goodnight." She left the room, not unaware that she had just made a rather snide dig at Hermione and her situation.

A tear rolled down Hermione's cheek and she gently brushed it away.

"Hey, don't listen to her, Granger," Malfoy said softly. "She doesn't know what she's talking about."

"Yes she does," Hermione said sadly. "She's right; even you will go home to your wife tonight, kiss her and then probably kiss that cute little bump that's started to show. I'll go home, feed my cat and curl up on the sofa with a book and a pint of ice cream because I'm a pathetic widow with no family."

"Stop that!" Malfoy said forcefully. "You are not pathetic! Pathetic would be if you stayed home all day wallowing and feeling sorry for yourself! Pathetic would require at least three more cats." He surprised a laugh out of her with the last comment. "You do good work here, Granger. The rest of us are really good at one thing, maybe two. You can flit across departments and situations as though you have specialised in every field there is. Unless I had been working with Bradbury this evening, I would have spent the whole time in that room shitting bricks that whatever the treating Healer was doing to the mother would have endangered the baby. With you in the room I just had to monitor the foetus in case something unexpected occurred. Besides, Astoria's gone to some health spa with her sister. I am going home to an empty house tonight as well."

"Well, let's keep each other company then. We have to stay around anyway for the next couple of hours in case of complications," Hermione proposed. With the delicate work that had been done to save their patient, it was much better in the immediate aftermath if the same witch or wizard performed any extra healing required. For the patients with more minor injuries they were already out of danger. For Hermione and Malfoy's patient, she was still in a serious, if stable, condition. They had to be available if needed. "I heard you applied for some grant money for a study," she opened a conversation.

Malfoy got up to refresh their cups. "Yes, it's a fertility study combined with an extensive genealogy project. I'm trying to isolate the gene that causes magic."

"Interesting," Hermione said, nodding her head. "Controversial… who's likely to fund it?"

"That's why I applied for the Ministry grant. I don't want anyone's money being tied to this. The purpose is to simply isolate the gene and determine the transmission of magic. What made your parents produce a witch? Do they have magical ancestors? Is it both of them or only one of them? What detriments have been caused through families intermarrying to keep the bloodlines pure? Is this why we have squibs? I am aware of the controversy surrounding the topic but I really think if we actually have scientific understanding of it then maybe some of the rhetoric that lingers can finally be put to rest."

"A noble aspiration," Hermione said. "I would like to contribute if you need me."

"I just said I need purely public money," he reminded her.

"Not money, you prat!" Hermione said, swatting him playfully. "Time. I can offer my time, my knowledge. I have extensive genealogies of both my mother and father's families if you wish to study them. If you need some of my blood or ova, I will donate them. God only knows they are not going to be used for anything else."

"Thank you, I will take you up on it if I'm approved. And you could still have plenty of use for your ova. You're what, twenty seven, twenty eight? That's the average age for producing children these days."

"You're forgetting one of the key ingredients to conceiving, Malfoy—a husband! Or, more specifically, a male willing to procreate," Hermione said.

"You could always use artificial insemination," Malfoy suggested. "You're a pretty practical woman, if you wanted a baby I'm sure you'd be able to cope without a husband. Goodness knows there are enough Weasleys and Potters around to lend you a hand if you need one." There was no rancour in his tone, it was teasing if anything.

Just as Hermione was trying to formulate an answer, a Medi-witch rushed into the room. "Healer Malfoy, Mrs Parker has just gone into active labour," she said breathlessly.

Malfoy threw his arms into the air and waved them jubilantly. "Finally! We've only been monitoring her for three days!" Hermione laughed. "Sorry to cut this short, Granger, but duty calls. Lucky my wife's not home," he said sarcastically.

"Very lucky," Hermione agreed drily. "I think our patient will be fine but I'll call you if there's any change. Thanks for the chat."

"You're welcome, goodnight."

"Goodnight."

Malfoy left the room with the Medi-witch, leaving Hermione alone. She refreshed her cup of tea for the third time, finally beginning to feel normal again as she sipped it.

Despite Malfoy's kind words—words she would never have expected from him—she did feel a bit pathetic that it was preferable for her to hang around the hospital rather than go home. She knew she was welcome in the Potter household at any time along with all the Weasley domiciles but it was not the same as going home to her own house, to her husband with his lopsided grin and his hair falling into his eyes. She could not muster the same enthusiasm for Harry's stories of the Auror Department, or George's tales of the shop that she had been able to for Ron. Even when she used to get home really late, he would sit and eat a meal with her, despite already having been fed at his mother's or sister's table, stating that food was good any time of the day or night. He would listen to her stories of the day she had had and the patients she had treated. He would offer her advice on how to deal with some of the more stringent purebloods she encountered and would always, always, threaten dire retribution on anyone who upset her.

Even now she could almost hear him counsel her on the fact that the new Healer who sniped at her was just jealous because she could never hope to achieve the accolades and glories that Hermione did and so she had to latch onto the only things she could perceive as being different to lord over Hermione. And if she wanted, he would lurk in the alley by the hospital and cast the slug-spewing curse on the Healer as she walked by.

Hermione sighed. She did want someone to go home to. The only problem was she wanted that someone to be Ron.

-oOo-

Two months later, Hermione was lounging in the sitting room of 12 Grimmauld Place after dinner. She could hear Harry and Ginny upstairs, singing a bedtime song to their three-year old son. She smirked wickedly as the lyrics of _'Life is a Highway'_ floated down from the upper storey. She had bought the movie _Cars_ to amuse James when she was babysitting him one weekend and it had sparked an obsession in the toddler. She would often find him being sent through the floo to watch it, or even come home on occasion to find Harry fast asleep on her sofa while James sat there enthralled.

Her smirk turned into a small, sad smile as she remembered again that the ritual being undertaken upstairs was one she would never get to experience with her and Ron's own child. A few people had been dropping hints at her lately that she should _'get back out there'_ and start dating again. She had no interest in doing so. Dating meant getting dressed up, making stilted conversation, worrying that the worst she saw in herself was coming out to the person across the table and, ultimately, the awkward encounter where it would be revealed that she had not had sex in over three years and had only ever experienced her husband.

Not that their sex life had not been satisfying; far from it. In the six years they had been together, Hermione had not had a single complaint about their love life. It had been varied, oh-so-satisfying and very, very frequent. But she only knew what turned on and excited Ron. She had no clue if every man enjoyed a woman taking control in the bedroom. She did not know if they all liked having their balls sucked. She was unaware if Ron's almost-obsession with eating her out was due to the fact that the man truly enjoyed eating anything or if all men were like that. From what she could garner from conversations around her the answer to that was an emphatic no.

She wanted Ron.

"Sorry about that, Hermione," Harry said as he came back into the room. He topped off her glass of wine before he sat down. "You know how it is with him, you pick your battles." James had decided that evening that Mummy _and_ Daddy had to tuck him in and sing him a song, and no, Aunty My-knee could _not_ come and help. In order to keep the peace and prevent the inevitable toddler meltdown, Hermione had simply kissed him goodnight and waited patiently while Harry and Ginny attended to their parental duties.

"You wouldn't have it any other way, would you?" Hermione asked.

"Nope," Harry replied with a grin. "It's the best!" As soon as he said it, he seemed to remember how insensitive his words were. "I'm sorry, Hermione, I—"

Hermione cut him off with a wave of her hand. "No, Harry, I will take apologies and awkwardness from everyone else, but I never want _you_ to censor your words or try to apologise to me for anything. This is my life. I had six brilliant years with a man I loved and who loved me and I wouldn't trade them for anything. And if the next words out of your mouth are I should start dating again then I am going to throw this glass at you!" she threatened.

"Noted," Harry said. "What are you going to do though? I know you don't want to date now, but surely in the future…"

"Maybe," Hermione conceded. "Right now, I'm thinking more about having a child."

Harry frowned in confusion. "Um, I think you need to do the whole dating thing first don't you?" he asked.

Ginny entered the room in time to hear Harry's question. "Oh! Yes! Hermione, are you going to do it? I know so many guys who would just die to go out on a date with you!" she said excitedly.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Hermione put the brakes on Stagecoach Ginny. "No! I am not looking for anyone to date."

"She wants a baby," Harry chimed in.

Ginny mirrored her husband's confusion. "You need a man before you can have a baby," she said. "Hmmm, this changes things. Okay, we need to cross about ten guys off my list; they are definitely shaggable but not father material." She began to tap her finger against her lips in thought.

"Ginny! I am not going to date anyone! I don't need a man to have a baby," she argued.

Harry and Ginny looked at each other quizzically before Harry shrugged with a resigned expression. "You're a Healer; I really didn't think I would ever have to explain this to you. When a Mummy and a Daddy love each other very much—" A throw pillow hit Harry squarely in the face.

"Shut up, you prat! I know how it works! I don't need a whole, physical man to have a baby, just one vital part," Hermione said.

"Eeww, Hermione, what are you going to do? Conjure a dick and have your way with it?" Ginny asked.

Hermione just stared at her before bursting out laughing. She was quite red in the face when she finally regained control. "No, I just need the sperm; artificial insemination. If I wanted a dick I'd go out and buy a dildo."

"Too much information!" Harry declared, putting his hands over his ears and closing his eyes.

"Where would you get the sperm from?" Ginny asked interestedly.

"I'd get it from the sperm bank at the hospital. They have been doing a lot of IVF in the last few years to help couples have second and third babies." It was not understood why but a lot of magical families only ever seemed to produce one child. Hermione had suggested Muggle-style in-vitro fertilisation when she first started her Healing training. It had taken off and was proving quite successful.

"A baby is a lot of work, Hermione; are you sure you'll be able to cope on your own?" Harry asked.

Ginny swatted him on the arm. "Don't be stupid, she wouldn't be on her own—she has us!"

"Well, yes of course she does, but at two in the morning… with a screaming baby?" Harry argued.

Hermione's eyebrows rose reproachfully. "Really, Harry?" With just that one look, Harry was reminded of the number of times he floo-called Hermione in the middle of the night begging for help after insisting that Ginny take a sleeping potion in order to try and combat her exhaustion. James had been quite a colicky baby, impervious to the potion designed to combat the condition, and people often had to pace the floor with him at night in shifts, just so the baby would sleep. Harry was quite shameless, even cajoling Hermione to help as a way of combatting her ongoing grief. If it had been anyone else, he probably would have been hexed. Luckily they were having a dream run with their second baby, Albus, and no one had been called upon in the middle of the night as yet from the sleep-deprived parents.

"Well I think it's a good idea and definitely warrants some more thought," Ginny said supportively.

"I don't think I need to apply any more thought to it," Hermione said. "I've been thinking for two months. I want to do this."

"Wow," Ginny said softly. "Two months?"

"Yep, filled three notebooks with pros and cons, lists of everything I would need and how much it would cost me. I've researched child care options and schooling. I've basically decided to go ahead. Now it's just a case of picking out the daddy."

Ginny was a bit flabbergasted. She completely understood Hermione's reasoning for doing this. She did not know how Hermione had managed to cope these last three years completely on her own—she was sure she would be unable to herself. When Ron had been killed, Ginny had thought to herself then that if something happened to Harry then at least she had James as a reminder of him. Hermione had nothing save her memories and a large payout from Gringotts Bank, considering it had been the incompetence of one of their guards who had stuck his blade into Ron's back by mistake when he was trying to get out of the path of a fleeing thief. Gringotts had tried to blame Ron at first, then deflect attention onto the Golden Trio's daring robbery of and escape from the bank near the end of the war, but Hermione and Harry, combined with heavy public pressure, had forced them to admit their mistake and pay Hermione compensation for her husband's death.

Rita Skeeter had waged a one-day campaign to try and sway public opinion against Hermione for coming out so strongly against Gringotts when, in the reporter's eyes, she should have been at home, struck immobile with grief and despair. The public were overwhelmingly in support of Hermione though, and held her up as a shining example of grace and dignity; Rita wisely backed off immediately. Ginny knew that Hermione would give all the money back in a heartbeat if it meant Ron would still be with them. As a matter of fact, she could almost see the cute little baby they probably would have had by now had Ron lived.

"You should do it," Ginny said. "We will help you."

"What?" Harry asked at the same time that Hermione's face broke out into a grateful smile.

"Harry, as much as you are going to hate what I am about to say, you won't understand. It's a woman thing."

"You do get it," Hermione said. She got up and squeezed onto the chair with Ginny, putting her arms around her sister-in-law and hugging her tightly. "It's not about trying to fill a hole in my life, it's about nurturing and creating and having a purpose; someone to love wholeheartedly."

Ginny sniffed and returned Hermione's hug. "Yes, and you'll be a great mum. It was always in you."

"Hang on, how did we go from thinking about this to doing it?" Harry asked. The two witches just looked at him. "Okay, okay," he said, putting his hands up in supplication. "I'll do what I normally do, just go with the decisions the two of you make."

"Wise choice, Harry," Hermione said.

If she could not have a baby with Ron, she felt that having one in his memory was the next best thing. Now she just had to choose the donor.

-oOo-

 _She hated things that were out of order. She could not abide schedules being disrupted. It particularly irked her when perfectly satisfying solutions to potential problems were staring everyone in the face and no one would act upon them. Take, for example, her idea that staff without husbands and children could be rostered for all the graveyard shifts, leaving the easy, eight to five shifts for those with responsibilities other than work. A simple solution that saw her laughed out of the office of her supervisor. She was informed that back in his day the graveyard shifts were all that a newly-qualified trainee would be given; the senior staff had paid their dues after all in the same way. The current team of Healers were just lucky that he believed in sharing the load._

 _It took only a month of fifteen-hour days, last-minute weekend shifts and several one-sided arguments with her irritable daughter before she asked to step down from being a Healer to being a Medi-witch in the fertility research and storage labs. Even though the pay was less, the hours were regular and she was home at an hour more conducive to family bonding. The atmosphere was more to her liking as well—structured, ordered, stable and sterile._

 _Most of the time._

 _She was assisting in the collecting of male sperm samples for Healer Malfoy's research project. He had been granted partial funding from the Ministry and the rest from a special grant administered by St Mungo's itself. In order for his research to be most effective he needed at least two hundred samples of each of the three 'types' in the wizarding world—pureblood, halfblood and Muggleborn. He currently had two hundred and twenty two pureblood samples, two hundred and twenty three halfblood samples and two hundred and twenty one Muggleborn samples. It was not even; his results would be skewed._

 _She randomly plucked six vials from the corresponding cooling chambers in order to bring the numbers in each to an even two hundred and twenty. Carefully checking the identification numbers on each vial, she extracted the information sheets which listed any known family medical history and transferred the vials into the cooling chamber that housed the sperm donations for the hospitals IVF programme. In doing so, she had brought the number of donations in that chamber up to an even one hundred. Perfect order in all facets of her duties. She filed the identification sheets amongst the others relating to the IVF donors and congratulated herself on a job well done._

 _Structured. Ordered. Stable. Good._

-oOo-

"Buzz! Buzz! Buzz! Buzz! Buzz! Buzz! Buzz! Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!"

"God, yes! Buzz! Buzz! Buzz! Buzz! Buzz! Hermione?" Harry yelled as soon as he stepped through the floo into Hermione's sitting room.

"Yes, Harry?" Hermione asked in amusement over James' continual chanting of _'Buzz! Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!'_

"Please tell me you bought _'Toy Story'_! You didn't just rent it?" Harry asked with a slightly manic expression on his face.

"Oh, Harry, I wish I could tell you…" Hermione began with a downcast air. She burst out laughing at the panicked expression on her best friend's face. "Of course I bought it! Don't you think I learned that lesson after the _'Finding Nemo'_ incident?"

"Don't say that!" Harry hissed. It was too late. James immediately switched his chanting to _'Nemo! Nemo! Nemo! Nemo!'_

"Just keep swimming, just keep swimming," Hermione chanted as she stood up. "What do you want to watch, Sweetums: _'Finding Nemo'_ or _'Toy Story'_?"

"BUZZ! BUZZ! BUZZ! BUZZ! BUZZ!" James yelled.

"Okay, okay, come on," Hermione took the worked-up child from his father's arms and deposited him on the sofa. As quickly as she could she retrieved the DVD and set the movie playing. As soon as the Disney theme came on it was as though a flick had been switched. James immediately became riveted. Hermione dropped a kiss on the toddler's head and left him sitting in front of the television. She joined Harry at the table in the adjoining dining room.

"Thank you," Harry said gratefully.

"Are you any closer to being able to get electricity hooked up to Grimmauld Place?" Hermione asked.

"No, I'm pretty sure that ship has completely sailed. Ginny and I are talking about getting a new, bigger place anyway. Maybe somewhere out in the country where James and Albus can easily play outdoors," he said.

"That sounds great," Hermione said with a smile. "I'll buy you a TV and DVD player for a housewarming present," she joked.

"I will hold you to that," Harry said. "What are you working on?" he asked, eyeing the multiple sheets of parchment littering Hermione's dining room table. He picked one up and began to read it. "ID 301-HB. Eyes: green; hair: brown; height: six foot one; race: Caucasian; family medical history… Am I allowed to read these?"

"They're the donor information sheets," Hermione told him.

"For the sperm guy?" he asked.

"Yes, Harry, for the _sperm guy_ ," she mocked.

"I was surprised that everyone was so accepting of your plan," Harry said. After the weekly dinner on Sunday at the Burrow, talk had turned to babies and families as usual and Ginny encouraged Hermione to tell the family about what she was considering. There was some cautious optimism and a few pointed questions but overall the family was supportive of Hermione and her wish to have a baby of her own.

"So was I, to be honest," Hermione said. "I thought for sure that Molly would pour cold water over the whole idea but she told me privately that although it was hard for her to understand why I would do this in this way, she also understood why I wanted to do it, to have a baby. I know that didn't make much sense but she is behind me."

"I guess it's one of those women things," Harry said drily.

"You know we have a club," Hermione joked.

"Yes, yes," Harry said in a long-suffering tone. "So what do we do with these?" he asked, picking up another sheet and reading it.

"We?" Hermione asked.

"Yes, _we_ ," Harry stressed. "You're not in this alone, Hermione, you know we're here for you."

"Thank you, Harry," Hermione smiled. "I'm— _we're_ —going through these to select the lucky sperm." She paused to scribble some information into one of her notebooks and quickly run an Arithmantic calculation.

"What's that?" Harry asked, looking over at her work.

"Calculations to determine the best match of my genetic material with the ones here," Hermione informed him.

Harry immediately burst into laughter. "What?" he asked.

"What?" Hermione returned. "I want to ensure I give my baby the best chance."

"And this will ensure that?" Harry asked, still laughing.

"I know nothing about these men save that they were willing to donate a part of themselves in order to help people create a family," Hermione defended.

"Have you considered asking someone you know then?" he asked.

Hermione nodded. "Briefly, but I decided against it."

"Why?" Harry asked curiously.

"I thought it would be a bit awkward to ask in the first place and then to expect whoever it was to happily watch as the child he knew he had a part in creating grew up with no input as to how. Most of the men I know are in committed relationships anyway and our circle is really quite small. What if the father's looks are extremely prevalent in the child? You know what I mean?" Hermione paused.

"Yeah, like how everyone knows straight away that I'm James Potter's son because I look exactly like him," Harry said.

"Yes, so, let's pretend I asked, say Neville, and the child looked exactly like him. He is married and he and Hannah are trying for a baby of their own. How would my child feel knowing his father has another family and essentially only provided the biological material to create him, never having the intention of supporting him and loving him… I couldn't sentence either father or child to that. I think it would be too cruel," Hermione explained.

"I get it," Harry said understandingly. "Anonymous would be the way to go then. So, back to the calculations then… what are you doing?"

"I told you, I'm trying to determine the best biological match."

Harry looked at her dubiously. "Really? And eye colour, hair colour, height and medical history are going to determine that?"

"Yes, of course it will."

"Hermione, did you run these calculations before you married Ron?"

"What?! Don't be absurd! Of course not, I loved him!" Hermione said defensively.

"And you won't love this child if it's not perfect?" Harry asked.

"Are you mental? I will love this child with everything I have! What's wrong with wanting to be certain that he has the best chance in life?"

"Nothing, my point is that you're shooting fish in a barrel with this method. Yes, you might have the calculation that determines the best outcome but who's to say that three generations back, donor number 301-HB here didn't have a humpbacked, knock-kneed, drooling imbecile for an ancestor whose genes are just sitting dormant in this perfect specimen waiting to come out?"

Hermione's eyes widened. She looked down at her calculations in dismay. "Oh my God, Harry! How could you say something like that? Now I'm going to panic!"

Harry chuckled at his best friend's dismay. "I'm just pointing out that no calculation you perform is going to tell you anything of how your baby is going to turn out. Look over there at James." The pair of them turned to see James still sitting on the sofa in exactly the same position Hermione had left him in, staring intently at the screen. "I love him to death. I love him beyond death. I love both my boys beyond anything I ever thought possible. It didn't stop me from wanting to throttle the shit out of that one today. And you know you are the only person I can admit that to. Even my wife has no clue how close I come I come to toddlercide on certain days. He was chanting Buzz, Buzz, Buzz for nearly an hour while I got him and me ready to come over here. No calculation on earth could have predicted that. Your kid will do the same thing one day. There will be some movie that is the next best thing and he'll be chanting it over and over until you cave and bring him to my new house with the giant, flat-screen TV and top-of-the-line DVD player and recorder you're going to buy me so he can watch it."

"You know I was only going to go to Betta and buy you some cheapies," Hermione said. "I'm about to embark upon the journey of single-motherhood. I have to start pinching the pennies. Well, all this work is down the drain, isn't it?" She closed her notebook and gathered the parchments.

"It's all part of the journey, Hermione. Here, give me those." Harry held out his and took the sheaf of papers Hermione gave him. He rapidly flipped through them, removing six and holding them up, the blank sides facing Hermione. "All of these are purely anonymous donors," he said. "The only thing on these sheets is the identifying number and known family medical history. Nothing here looks concerning to me. No traits, no personality, nothing. Pick one."

Hermione took a deep breath. "I don't know; it's too random."

"That's the point. Ron was random; you didn't choose to fall in love with him specifically, you just did. No matter which of these guys provides the biological matter you need, it's all random. You could go out tonight, get blind drunk and sleep with some random guy who gets you pregnant. Apart from the sex and the hangover, this is the same thing."

She knew he was right. "Okay, this one," Hermione said, plucking a sheet from the middle of the fanned out pages Harry was holding. She read the identification number in the top right-hand corner of the parchment. "Number 394-HB. _'HB'_ , do you think that's his initials?" Hermione asked. She immediately began to rifle through her memories, trying to think of someone with the initials HB but came up blank.

"No," Harry said. He was still holding the pages Hermione had not selected. "Look at these, this one says MB, these two both say PB and these two are also HB. I bet they stand for pureblood, halfblood and Muggleborn."

The Healer in Hermione nodded, even as the activist within her was crying out in indignation. "That makes sense." She picked up one of the sheets marked with PB and held it up. "Maybe I should pollute the bloodline," she joked.

Harry laughed. "No, the ancestors rolling in the graves might have a detrimental effect on the rotation of the earth," he said. "I really am glad you're doing this, you know."

"Really? Because at first you didn't seem so sure," Hermione said.

"I think it just came out of the blue a bit. But now that I've thought about it, and seen you some more, I think you're doing the right thing." Hermione was still looking at him quizzically. "I just mean, okay, back when George and Angelina announced they were having a baby you got all teary and you kind of retreated into yourself. It was like you had just lost Ron again. It wasn't quite as bad when Bill and Fleur announced that Louis was on the way but you still got quite upset. When we announced Albus you were nothing but happy for us. You'd turned a corner.

"A lot of people are going to think that you are doing this so you can have something that you missed out on with Ron but you're not. I know it's just the next step for you, the next part of your life adventure. And you're going to be great at it and we will all be here for you, every step of the way."

Hermione clasped her hands together over her heart. "Oh, Harry, that has to be one of the sweetest things you've ever said to me!"

"Well, just don't expect it all the time," he said with a grin. Usually he was pretty good at putting his foot firmly in his mouth around Hermione and Ginny. Once in a while he was bound to get it right.

-oOo-


	2. Chapter 2

_Disclaimer: Harry Potter is owned by JK Rowling et al. Any characters or locations you recognise are the intellectual property of these individuals and corporations. I make no money from the writing of this story._

 _Thank you for all the reviews and alerts. The response to this story has been amazing so far!_

-oOo-

 **Chapter II**

Severus Snape ignored the tell-tale pop of Apparition that signalled the arrival of one of his house-elves. Carefully, he measured exactly four and four-sixths of an ounce of powdered dragon eggshell and folded it into the delicate brew he was tending. His house-elves knew not to disturb him when he was in his lab but they had their ways of letting him know he was needed urgently. If the banging of pots and pans in his kitchen was any indication, then whatever had happened required his immediate attention.

Nothing, save an earth-shattering event, would distract him from finishing whatever stage of a potion he was working on so it was another seven and a half minutes before he placed his potion under stasis and climbed the stairs from his basement to the kitchen of his remote cottage.

"What is it, Sparta?" Severus asked resignedly when he entered the room.

His head elf immediately stopped what he was doing, turned and bowed, much to his master's consternation. "Master, great descendant of the Most Noble House of Prince," Sparta began.

Severus waved his hand impatiently. "Yes, yes, I am your Great Master et cetera, et cetera. Just get on with what you have to say!" They went through this every time!

"I am here to offer my congratulations, Master."

"For what?" Severus asked blankly. He had done nothing to warrant specific congratulations since the last time he had seen the elf.

"Congratulations on the birth of your son, Master," Sparta said.

"MY WHAT?!"

-oOo-

 _Thirteen Hours Earlier_

 _'Molly, it's time!'_

The ethereal silver glow of Hermione's Patronus had woken Molly and Arthur Weasley when it lit up their bedroom in the early hours of the morning. Molly was instantly awake when she heard the voice of her daughter-in-law deliver the news she had been on tenterhooks waiting for for the last several days. She dressed quickly in the clothes she had laid out every evening in anticipation of this call and pressed a kiss to her groggy husband's cheek.

"I will let you know as soon as there's any news," she promised.

"Of course you will," Arthur said with a yawn. "Tell Hermione good luck and I expect to be one of the first visitors."

Molly wasted no time, bustling down the stairs, grabbing her cloak from the hook as she passed it and picking up the two bags on the chair by the fireplace. After throwing the pinch of floo powder down, she entered the fireplace and called out, "Granger Residence!" letting the green flames swirl her through the network and expel her into her daughter-in-law's sitting room.

She was greeted with the sight of Hermione bent over grasping the back of the sofa and breathing deeply. Molly immediately moved to her and placed one hand on the small of her back, the other on her forehead and guided her through the breathing pattern. Once the contraction had passed she asked, "How long have you been going?"

"As it turns out, since about nine o'clock," Hermione answered with a grimace. "I thought it was just the normal back pain I've been experiencing the last few days but I had a pretty strong contraction about twenty minutes ago and my waters broke just before I called you."

"Off to St Mungo's we go then," Molly said bracingly. Hermione nodded. There was no one else, save Ron of course, that Hermione would have wished to have with her at this time. Even back on the day Hermione had confirmed her pregnancy, Molly was there.

 _Hermione felt a little bit sad that she was sitting there alone. While this was something she had certainly envisaged sharing with her late husband, she was pragmatic enough to know that wishing would never make it so. A knock on the front door broke her out of her self-imposed reverie and she went to answer it._

 _"Molly!" she said in surprise, opening the door wider to admit her mother-in-law._

 _Molly hugged the younger woman and gave her cheek a little pinch. "Hello, dear, I came by to be with you while you did this."_

 _Hermione returned her hug and kissed Molly's cheek. "Thank you," she said, the emotion causing a slight tremble in her voice. "I know this isn't easy."_

 _"Sweetheart, when you have your own baby you will learn that nothing is ever easy—apart from loving him or her with all of your heart. Not even death can break that kind of love. I love both of my departed boys as much now as I ever did and I will continue to do so until I take my last breath and go to meet them again. Of course they will be breathless from having to have cleaned up decades of mess before I see where they've been living all these years." Both women laughed which held at bay the tears in their eyes following Molly's declaration. "I said I would support you so here I am. Would you like me to cast the charm?"_

 _Hermione nodded. "Yes please, I was about to myself but it's better if someone else does it," she said nervously._

 _"Come along then," Molly said, striding briskly into Hermione's bedroom. Hermione smiled at her mother-in-law's characteristic no-nonsense tone and action. She followed her eagerly. As a Healer, Hermione was highly aware of her body and its condition at any time. She often practiced various (harmless) techniques on herself and documented her own health on a regular basis. There had been changes in her body in the days since she had had the IVF procedure performed. Her blood pressure had elevated slightly and her average core temperature had increased. The last two days she had felt an intense exhaustion following her shifts; it was nothing like anything she had ever experienced and only sleep had been able to restore her. Hot, sweet tea and chocolate did nothing._

 _"Right, sit down on the bed and let's get started," Molly instructed. She waited while Hermione seated herself and lifted her top, exposing her midriff. "Ready?" she asked with a smile. Hermione nodded. Molly drew her wand and pointed it at Hermione's abdomen. "_ Comprobo Praegnatus _," she intoned, swishing her wand twice and ending with three quick flicks. They waited with bated breath. Barely a minute had passed before Hermione's abdomen began to glow slightly; rapidly becoming brighter and brighter until there was no doubt that the spell had indeed confirmed her pregnancy. Hermione bit her lip and looked at Molly with an excited gleam in her eyes. "It's positive," Molly said happily before Hermione threw herself into her mother-in-law's arms, laughing and crying at the same time._

 _"I am so happy for you, dear," Molly said, her eyes brimming with tears to match Hermione's._

 _"This is really happening, isn't it?" Hermione asked._

 _"Indeed it is, your opportunity for second thoughts has long gone now," Molly joked._

 _Hermione drew back and placed her hand protectively over her abdomen. She shook her head rapidly. "Not one second thought is running through my head," she said. She laughed again. "I am so happy, Molly. I didn't think I could ever be this happy again!" The tears spilled over once more and Molly embraced her daughter-in-law again._

 _"These last years have been incredibly hard on you, losing first your parents and then Ron so close together. I knew though that Death would not beat you; you've risen above your grief and made the ones responsible for it pay—literally—and moved on with your life. I know you will never forget my son, and you will always be our daughter. This child will be our eighth grandchild and we will love him or her with all our hearts. I will be with you as much as you need."_

 _"Thank you, Molly," Hermione said softly into the older woman's shoulder. "It means so much to me that you understand that my life has gone on. I really appreciate that you will share this journey with me, especially since my own mother is gone." Despite Hermione having saved her parents from perishing at the end of a Death Eater's wand, she had been unable to save them from the car accident that had claimed their lives five years previously. She took solace from the fact that her relationship with them before their death had been stronger than ever but she still missed them almost as much as she missed her husband. The passing of time dulled the hurt but occasions like this brought it back again._

 _"It is my honour, love. Now, how about a nice cup of tea?" Molly asked._

 _"Certainly," Hermione said, getting up._

 _"No, no, I'll get it. You need to conserve all your energy now, dear. You just have a seat on the sofa and let Mother Weasley take care of you." Hermione knew it was useless to protest. When Molly broke out the_ 'Mother Weasley' _card it was easier just to obey._

The pair of witches accessed the floo again, this time calling out for St Mungo's. Upon arrival, Hermione was swiftly admitted and installed in the maternity ward. A Medi-witch attended her and her Healer arrived to examine her, declaring that she was five centimetres dilated and everything looked good. Now all they had to do was wait.

Several hours later they were both sitting knitting baby booties and laughing about the time Charlie had unexpectedly arrived after dinner one Sunday night.

 _Hermione sat on the couch in the sitting room of the Burrow, a bowl of ice cream resting on her protruding belly._

 _"Didn't I tell you that is the best use for that?" Ginny asked with a laugh._

 _Hermione grimaced. "Yes, and it is, but I can't help but feel a bit horrible for doing this." She stirred the slightly melted ice cream idly. "Where is Harry with my M &M's?" she demanded._

 _Harry burst through the front door at that moment. "Here!" he said, thrusting the large bag at his pregnant sister-in-law. "I had to go all the way to Exeter for these!"_

 _"And I truly appreciate it," Hermione said with a grin as she upended the entire bag into her bowl and began to stir the candies in. She dug her spoon in, piling a huge amount of dessert onto it and into her mouth._

 _"Whoa! Hermione, are you channelling Ron?" a not-often-heard voice asked from the kitchen doorway._

 _"Charlie!" most of the occupants of the room shouted. Everyone except Hermione jumped up to greet him. She did try, but after a few seconds of struggling, she just shrugged and went back to eating her ice cream. She waited patiently until the redhead flopped down onto the sofa beside her._

 _"So how are you and the parasite?" he asked, slipping his arm around Hermione's shoulder and giving her a squeeze._

 _"Dn clyr ncrnvw mpsite!" Hermione said through her mouthful of ice cream._

 _Charlie burst out laughing. "Sorry, Ron, I thought we buried you a few years ago but clearly we buried Hermione and you've been masquerading all this time!"_

 _Hermione swallowed and smacked her spoon against the side of Charlie's head. "Be nice!" she admonished. She shook her head. The Weasley boys all seemed to thrive on mocking one another—even death did not stop it. Bill, Charlie and George would constantly emulate Fred and Ron's worst habits. They were not even above bringing up their past misdeeds to distract others from whatever it was they were doing. Even Harry and Percy would join in on occasion. "And don't call your niece or nephew a parasite!" Hermione finished._

 _"Hermione, that thing in there is attached to you. It's sucking its own life force directly from you to sustain itself and will continue to do so until the day it decides you're no longer good enough and exits your body in the most painful way possible." Charlie said all this in the most macabre tone he could muster. "Give me the dragon way any day. All the fun of sex then the female just lays an egg she has to sit on for a few months. Much more efficient," he teased. "Look at you, you didn't get the fun and now you have the parasite! OW!" Hermione whacked him with the spoon much harder this time. Charlie swiped his finger through Hermione's ice cream and scooped some into his mouth._

 _"I am never going to let you speak to this baby you know," Hermione said mulishly._

 _Charlie just laughed. "I'm not allowed to talk to any of the moochers! Why would I have thought any differently for this one?"_

 _"UNCLE CHARLIE!" several voices screamed all at once and he was soon buried under a pile of small children. Rarely being around meant he was regarded as the favourite uncle when he did turn up. Hermione just shook her head in amusement again and continued to eat her ice cream._

A particularly strong contraction hit Hermione all of a sudden—the strongest one yet. She gasped with the pain, all thought of controlled breathing flying out of her mind as she chanted over and over, "Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow!"

"Breathe!" Molly said firmly. She knew things were going to move quickly now. The same thing had happened to her all six times she had given birth. The process seemed smooth and easy and all of a sudden, things turned on a Knut and she spent the next several hours wondering why on earth she was putting herself through this.

"Granger, Granger, Granger, anyone would think you were having a baby," Draco Malfoy teased as he leaned against the doorframe. He had just arrived for his shift and a glance at the patient board revealed his colleague had finally been admitted.

"Shut it, Malfoy," Hermione said through gritted teeth. "I dare you to come over here and say that. That slap I gave you in third year will feel like a love tap by the time I'm done with you," she threatened.

Malfoy just laughed. "I am a veteran of the delivery room, Granger; you think I haven't been threatened before? My own wife was in here a few months ago."

"Yeah," Hermione panted. "It's your fault I'm in this situation!"

"WHAT?!" Malfoy's voice raised several octaves in his shock at Hermione's accusation.

"It was your idea for me to use IVF; ergo it is your fault I'm here! I must blame a man, and I've chosen you. Get over here!"

"Yeah… that is not happening!" Malfoy declared. "Good luck, I'll see you when it's all over!" He quickly left the doorway.

Hermione's contraction was over by the time he had cleared the room. She picked up her knitting as though nothing had happened and said, "That was fun!"

Over the next several hours Hermione's contractions became closer and closer until she was finally fully dilated and in the final stages of labour. Molly and a Medi-witch held her hands while her Healer and another Medi-witch monitored everything with the baby.

"Big push on the next one, Hermione!" the Healer instructed.

"No, I'm done," Hermione said, her breath laboured and sweat pouring down her face.

"Not yet, you're not," Molly said. "Come on, love, just a bit more."

Hermione sobbed for five seconds before pulling herself together again and bearing down once more. She took a deep breath and pushed with all her might as soon as the next contraction hit.

"Yes, yes! Keep going," the Healer shouted. "Here's the head!"

It was all a blur of pushing, screaming and voices all telling her to 'breathe!' and 'push!' for the next several minutes until a very indignant cry pierced the air as her baby was finally pulled from her body. The Healer held the newborn up; very clearly displaying he was of the male persuasion. Hermione and Molly both burst into happy tears at the mere sight of him and he was immediately placed on Hermione's chest.

"Oh, Hermione, he is precious!" Molly declared.

"Hello, Baby!" Hermione said, she was laughing and crying at the same time. She looked up at her mother-in-law. "I was wrong, I've never been _this_ happy!" She placed her hand on her son's back and rubbed gently. He began to calm under the ministration of his mother. Molly bent down to place a kiss on the baby's tiny head, her joy almost equalling Hermione's.

Within minutes, the baby boy was cleaned, dressed, swaddled and in his mother's arms enjoying his first meal. Molly had gone out to the hallway to send her Patronus to Arthur, Harry and the rest of the family to let them know of the baby's arrival. As had been previously determined Arthur, Harry and Ginny were the first to visit, arriving just after Hermione had been moved into her own room.

"Where is my Godson?" Ginny demanded as soon as she walked in the room. Hermione had asked her and Harry to serve as her baby's Godparents almost immediately after she had discovered she was pregnant.

"Here," Hermione said, handing him over to her sister-in-law.

"He is perfect, Hermione," Ginny said softly, cradling the newborn in her hands. She made little kissy faces at him, giggling when he seemed to just stare at her and dismiss her antics. "What is his name?" she asked.

"Jonathan Ronald Granger," Hermione said promptly. She had decided on names months ago. If the baby had been a girl she would have been called Helena Ronda. Jonathan and Helena were her parent's names and she was determined to honour her late husband somehow.

Molly's eyes immediately teared up. "That's—that's beautiful, Hermione, thank you," she whispered.

Arthur cleared his throat awkwardly. "I know you kept your name when you married, but if you want to use Weasley, you may," he offered.

Hermione faltered for a second before Harry stepped in. "If I may," he said tentatively. Hermione nodded gratefully. "Ron told me this, years ago," Harry began. "First let me say Ron was inordinately proud to be a Weasley, but he knew he what he was—the younger son of the younger son and one of many, many Weasleys." Everyone in the room nodded. "Hermione is the first Granger in our world, and we all know how much she has distinguished herself," he said proudly. "Ron wanted to start a new dynasty; their kids were always going to be named Granger, not Weasley."

Hermione and Ginny both nodded. Although Arthur and Molly were surprised, and just a tiny bit disappointed, they could see and respect their late son's reasoning. They knew it did not mean that he was ashamed of his name or his family—it may have been slightly true in his younger years when he was still under the shadows of his many brothers and resentful of his place so far down the totem pole. This idea actually sounded exactly like something Ron would have suggested once he grew up and matured. Arthur could see that being the sire, so to speak, of an entire new dynasty would have appealed to his son and nothing more was said about Jonathan's surname. Hermione had still honoured his son with the baby's middle name and he could ask for no more than that.

Hermione relaxed when her parents-in-law offered no objections to her son's name. She nodded to Ginny to pass Jonathan off to Harry. Ginny did so and then climbed up on the bed to lie next to her friend and sister. "You okay?" the redhead asked, putting her arms around her.

Hermione nodded and snuggled slightly into Ginny. "Yeah, I am," she said. "Where are the boys?"

"At Bill and Fleur's," Ginny replied. "How was it?"

"You know, I thought you were crazy when you told me that you kind of forgot how bad the birth was after it, but you're right. It's like, I know it was bad, but I don't care. Look what I got, look what I made!"

"Third most beautiful baby boy I've ever seen!" she teased. Hermione gave her a mock-scowl.

"Most, most beautiful," she argued. Ginny just laughed and hugged her. It was an argument neither of them would convince the other of. "Thank you for everything," Hermione said softly.

"You're welcome," Ginny whispered. "Family forever and ever."

Harry looked at the girls fondly before turning his attention to the baby in his arms. "Aren't Mummy and Aunty Ginny funny?" he asked, speaking in baby-talk to his new nephew. "You're going to have to get used to them. But don't worry too much, me and James and Albus will be around to do all the manly things with you. I'll teach you how to fly a broom and climb a tree and no one can hurl a garden gnome as far as me. I'll show you my secret technique and you can be an honourary Potter in the gnome-throwing stakes. Whoa!" Harry stared down at the baby in surprise before bursting out laughing, gaining the attention of the others in the room.

"Hey, what do you reckon the chances are of Snape being a sperm donor?" he asked. Four identical looks mixed with astonishment and skepticism stared back at him.

"Why on earth would you ask that, Harry?" Hermione asked, affronted.

"No joke, this baby just made a face at me that was _exactly_ like Snape whenever he heard the name _Potter_." Harry fairly spat his surname in a credible imitation of their former Potions professor. He looked down. "He just did it again!"

"Harry, don't be absurd," Hermione said primly. "If you're going to be ridiculous then hand my baby back to me."

Harry just grinned and cradled the baby closer. A knock on the door had everyone looking up to see George and Angelina there. Molly and Arthur excused themselves with hugs and kisses and promises to visit the next day, allowing the next of the family in to meet and welcome their newest member. Harry relinquished the baby to Angelina and George crowded over her shoulder to get a good look.

"Hey there…" he trailed off and looked to Hermione for a name, "Jonathan," he greeted when Hermione said her son's name. "You look like you won't have as big a stick up your bum as your mum does. I've already got a box of my best pranks set aside with your name on—whoa!" George abruptly cut himself off and looked at Hermione in shock. "Hermione, your kid looks like Snape!"

"See—I told you!" Harry agreed emphatically.

"That's it; you two go and stand in that corner and don't look at or talk to my son ever again!" Hermione said firmly. The two men did as she said, albeit not without arguing.

"I swear, Hermione; that kid looked like he wanted to take points and give me a detention!" George declared.

"Then it shows he is clearly very clever already," Hermione argued back. Ginny and Angelina both laughed. The five of them continued to banter for a while, men and women clearly siding against each other until Hermione let out a huge yawn.

"That's our cue," Ginny said. She hugged Hermione one more time before climbing off the bed. "Congratulations. Your life will never be the same again."

Hermione laughed. "Thanks," she said drily. She accepted Jonathan back from George having relented to the boys' begging to hold him again several minutes earlier.

"Here's your mini-Snape," he said with a grin. Hermione just gave him a dirty look and grudgingly accepted the kiss he gave her. Harry and Angelina said their goodbyes as well and Hermione was finally left alone with her baby.

-oOo-

Meanwhile, Severus had been reeling from the news delivered to him by his elf. He had Apparated to Prince Manor and confirmed that there was, in fact, a line threading from his name and the magic had formed a name. The name _Jonathan_ stood out before him; he tried to figure out exactly how this could have happened. It had been years— _years!_ —since he had lain with a woman. Even then he knew he had scrupulously applied contraception charms every time. This was not possible. There was no reason why—

A horrible thought occurred to him and he immediately turned on the spot, Disapparating to another location.

He began banging on the door of the spacious home he had landed in front of immediately. "DRACO!" he yelled as he pounded on the wood.

"Severus!" Draco yanked open the door, wondering what on earth could have happened to his Godfather to make him act this way.

Severus barged into the house. "What did you do?" he demanded.

Draco closed the door. He would normally have made some quip about the way the man had entered without an invitation but he could feel the anger rolling off the other wizard in waves. "I do not know what you are referring to," he said calmly, hoping Severus would calm down.

"I participated in your little study—as embarrassing and undignified as it was. I donated my… my… you know what I donated, in confidence it would be used for the intended purpose. How did this happen?" Severus demanded.

Draco really had no clue what Severus was talking about. Yes, he knew Severus had donated his sperm to his study. Draco had not been shy in asking every male of his acquaintance to participate. It had taken quite a bit of convincing to get Severus to wank into a cup for him but he had extolled the noble aspiration of researching magic at its core, knowing that appealing to the academic within his Godfather would finally sway the man. "How did what happen?" Draco asked.

"How did my sperm end up fathering a child?" Severus asked, baring his teeth in anger. He had even lost his hesitance in naming the substance he had provided.

"WHAT?" Draco shouted.

"Yes, a name has embroidered itself onto the Prince Family Tapestry stemming from my name. I have not been with a woman at any time close to this being a natural occurrence yet my sperm was at St Mungo's. Again I ask, how did this happen?" He punctuated his question with pauses that took Draco straight back to the man's classroom. The inflection only underlined how seriously peeved his Godfather was.

"I don't know," Draco said seriously. This was a very big problem. A sudden thought occurred to him. "Oh, no!" he said. He tried. He really tried hard but the laugh bubbled up from his stomach and he could not stop it. Only one baby had been born at St Mungo's that day. Within seconds he was doubled over, laughing harder than he ever thought he had before, clutching his stomach and with tears rolling down his face. Severus merely stared dispassionately at his Godson during his fit. He did not appreciate being the butt of whatever humorous situation had grabbed hold of the boy. He was about to threaten him with torturous potions when a single word managed to escape Draco's lips, "Gr-Granger!"

"Granger what?"

"Granger had your baby!"

"WHAT?"

"It's the only possible explanation," Draco said.

"What do you mean?"

"Sorry, Healer / patient confidentiality. It's not my fault if you go to St Mungo's and pay a visit though."

Severus stared at him a moment longer before turning on his heel again and Disapparating away, this time to St Mungo's.

Maybe there he would get some answers.

-oOo-

Hermione was relishing the quiet. The tiredness that had overcome her when the others were there had miraculously disappeared once she had the chance to spend some time alone with her baby. She had sat up with her knees bent and was resting Jonathan on her thighs. Mother and son were examining each other intently, bonding in the most ancient of ways. Hermione could not keep the smile off her face as she checked him over, making sure he had all his limbs, examining every inch of him and marvelling once again that this tiny creature, this beautiful baby had come from her; been made by _her_.

Presently, Hermione began speaking to him. "How can I love you so much already? The other mothers told me I would but I didn't really believe them. If I had to right now, I would throw myself out of that window for you. Look at you. You are wonderful. Your eyes are so blue; I wonder what colour they will turn out to be. Most babies I have seen with this colour turn out to have quite dark eyes. And you have so much hair! All black, too—clearly not from me. But that is of no matter; I don't know who provided the sperm to make you but I will be forever grateful to him for it. And I will tell you all about your other Daddy, your Daddy who had to go away but who would have loved you with every fibre of his being.

"I promise to do my best by you. You will be my top priority from now on. Everything I do will be for you and to make your life better. It's you and me against the world, kiddo, but we'll be fine. You already met Nanna and Grandad Weasley as well as Uncle Harry, Aunty Ginny, Uncle George and Aunty Angelina. Over the next few days you'll meet the rest of your aunties and uncles and all your cousins. They will teach you to play Quidditch and throw gnomes, but you must promise me to be careful, okay?" She reached with one of her hands and hooked her little finger around the baby's tiny hand. "Pinkie promise. I know we're not their family by blood but we are by marriage and for them, that's as good as. Even though our little family will be just the two of us, we will never be alone. You will grow up big and strong and then you'll go off to Hogwarts and become a proud Gryffindor—oh my God!"

Hermione stared down at the look of utter derision her son gave when she told him he would be a Gryffindor. She knew that he did not understand her, and his facial expressions at this point were involuntary muscle contractions, but the timing and the look were impeccable. She could clearly see what Harry and George meant. Jonathan did look exactly like Severus Snape at his most haughty when his face contorted like that!

"Okay, that was weird," she said. She wiggled a little bit and picked Jonathan up, bringing his face closer to hers. "I am about to issue my first, official Mummy order: never make that face again!"

"He cannot help it if he has the sense to not want to be a Gryffindor," a voice said from the doorway. Hermione looked up to see the man in question standing stiffly at the entrance to her room. Taking a moment to ensure Jonathan was safely tucked in her arms and she herself was presentable (as presentable as a woman could be mere hours after giving birth, anyway), she invited her former professor into the room.

"I would have expected better from you, Severus," she said. They had long been on a first-name basis. "If you are here because of something Harry or George has told you then you are wasting your time."

Severus scoffed. "You underestimate me," he retorted. "I put little to no stock into anything either of those two imbeciles says. My information has come from a completely reliable source. To put it bluntly, that is my son you have there."

"My son," Hermione refuted, holding the baby even closer.

Severus had the grace to nod in acknowledgement. This situation had been thrust upon him and he had not had any time to prepare himself for any form of argument. If there was one thing he understood, it was the protectiveness a mother could and would display when necessary. He certainly had no intention of coming between the sacred mother/child bond, but he had to understand how this baby had come to be born.

"What makes you think this is your son?" Hermione asked.

"Ancient Prince family magic," Severus replied promptly. "The family tapestry was imbued many centuries ago with the blood of the then Head of House and every one of his descendants has since had their name embroidered on the infernal thing upon birth. One of my inherited elves has long been tasked with keeping track of additions to the tapestry. Imagine my surprise when he came to my house today and informed me I now had a descendant of my very own. I do not shirk my duty, even when it is not a duty I asked for."

Hermione rolled her eyes at his dramatic statement. She shifted the baby in her arms. "Well let me relieve you of your obligation. I have not asked for nor do I want your presence in our lives if you are going to see us as an obligation or a burden. Although I do have to ask, why on earth did you donate sperm for the purpose of artificial insemination if you were going to act like this when a baby was conceived?" she asked.

"And therein lies the problem, Hermione," Severus said. "I…donated… for Draco's genealogy study, not for my donation to be used to father a child." Hermione's mouth dropped open. This was a big problem! "I now seek to understand what will happen next."

Seized by an irrational moment, one she would later blame on the residual hormones in her system, Hermione clutched Jonathan tight to her chest and declared, "Well you're not putting him back!"

The mere thought of that impossibility surprised a snort of amusement from Severus. His lips continued to twitch as he answered, "I think we can safely say that is _not_ one of our options."

Hermione relaxed and shook her head at her momentary bout of madness. "Look, you really don't have to do anything," she said. "I believe you about your tapestry, my son clearly resembles you and I am really sorry your donation was mixed up somehow. But I always intended to do this by myself, with whatever help I might need coming from my family. I have no need for monetary or emotional support from anyone and I will not embroil myself or my son in any form of custody battle. I am not unreasonable. Now that we know about Jonathan's paternity I am willing to include you in his life. Know this though, if you are involved, you are to be _involved_. I will not have him pulled from pillar to post at a whim depending on your other commitments, be they business or personal. I don't expect you to answer right away, but once you make the commitment to him, you are making it for life. I will see to it personally."

Severus was familiar enough with the declarations of Gryffindors to know that Hermione meant every word she said. He was ill equipped to deal with the gamut of emotions he was currently experiencing. One feeling he could definitely identify was gratefulness. Gratefulness that Hermione was being reasonable, demonstrating that sense of logic she was famed for. Gratefulness that she was giving him time to consider the situation and come to a conclusion. There was one thing though… "May I see him?" he asked.

"Of course," Hermione answered. He came to the side of the bed and bent over to see his son closely for the first time. Hermione shifted, surprising him when she actually handed him the baby rather than just moving him in order for him to be observed. Luckily Severus had recently been handling Draco's baby on a regular basis so he was able to take and hold the infant rather deftly with no awkwardness.

As he looked down into the face of the newborn in his arms, Severus' breath hitched. He had always scoffed at parents who saw themselves in their babies; he certainly could see no similarities between the scrawny infants and the adults that had sired them. It was only once they were older, Harry Potter being a perfect case-in-point, when the resemblance was more pronounced. Staring back at him was an amalgamation of baby pictures he had seen of himself and his mother. Granger's influence was certainly prominent as well (especially in the ears and the little upturn of the nose), but he could clearly see the Prince eyes, the Snape cheekbones and the mixture of the two, from him, of the high forehead.

A never-before-felt surge of emotion coursed through him. He had been bound by vows for most of his life to protect and defend various children, both through his profession and through his personal promises. He had felt a rapport with his Godson for most of his life and had always tried to steer him, not always successfully, in the right directions. Never had he laid eyes on a child and felt an immediate connection. Never had he felt an immediate, overwhelming need to protect and defend to the death, of his own will and his own wish; to gladly lay down his life so that this child, his child, could live and thrive. Eyes that mirrored his own stared back at him. Jonathan seemed to regard him for a moment before stretching his little neck up and then settling down to sleep. His mouth puckered slightly and a tiny mewl of contentment emanated forth, as though he knew that the hands that held him were perfectly safe and he could sleep without fear. Unconsciously Severus lifted the tiny babe and brought their heads together. He placed a gentle kiss on Jonathan's forehead, oblivious to the look of awe that Hermione was giving him.

After gazing down at his son for a few moments longer, he lifted his eyes to the woman in the bed. "I am his father," he said. "I want to be his father; I want to be part of his life."

-oOo-


	3. Chapter 3

_Disclaimer: Harry Potter is owned by JK Rowling et al. Any characters or locations you recognise are the intellectual property of these individuals and corporations. I make no money from the writing of this story._

-oOo-

 **Chapter III**

Impulsiveness was not a word that anyone would use to describe Severus Snape. People would therefore be surprised that the three most important decisions of his life were made impulsively.

The first was taking the Dark Mark and joining the Death Eaters in a fit of pique over Lily marrying James Potter that very day.

The second was taking a vow to protect her son at all costs.

The third was declaring his intent to be involved in his newborn son's life. At least this decision did not involve torture and mayhem and having to stick his neck out for reckless teenagers. Not that he would not do all of it in a heartbeat if his son's life depended on it but at least with a say in how he was being raised, he might be able to avoid at least some of the more dangerous elements of the other vows he had undertaken in his life.

Following his declaration, Hermione wisely proposed that they both get some rest and begin to hammer out the details the next day. Severus immediately acquiesced to her request and relinquished the baby back to her with a soft kiss on his forehead. He departed after awkwardly wishing the new mother a pleasant sleep.

Sleep was the farthest thing from Hermione's mind after the door closed softly behind the former spy. She looked down at the baby in her arms, sleeping peacefully, wholly unaware of his mother's turmoil.

"This is indeed an unexpected turn of events, isn't it?" she asked. She sat still for several minutes, just trying to process the revelations of the last hour—well the last three hours really. To be precise from the moment Harry had looked at her and told her that her baby reminded him of Severus Snape. Sure, they might have joked about it. Harry and George's banishment to the corner had included a conversation between the two men—absolutely meant to be overheard—about the mechanics of Snape wanking into a cup to provide the necessary donation. The three girls had drawn the line at speculation between the pair of what fantasies might fuel such an action and Harry and George had had to dodge several hexes sent their way.

All in all, she was unsure just what she was feeling right now. All this time the 'father' had been an abstract idea—not a real person. The Weasleys were a huge part of Hermione's life and would be the only family her son knew as his own. While she was the first of the Grangers in the magical world, she was the last in her particular branch in the Muggle world. So while Jonathan would know the circumstances surrounding his conception—in age-appropriate ways of course—ultimately the man who would have held the position of father would have been Ron.

She was also set for a life of single-motherhood. She had already made decisions regarding Jonathan's child-care arrangements, his early education and even what sort of leisure activities she would introduce him to. Now she had rashly brought another person into the equation—one who most likely had extremely different views to her about child-rearing.

And what of the man himself? Yes, she had always defended him when she was younger, indeed still defended him to this day when a narrow-minded soul took it upon him or herself to disparage the proud, solitary, defiant… surly… unpleasant… _'He can be funny when he wants to,'_ a small voice in her mind piped up. Hermione remembered back to an evening not long after the war when she had been seated next to him at one of the interminable banquets they had all been forced to attend in celebration.

The witch in charge of the seating at this particular event had had a bit of a thing for Ron and so had seated him in a prime position next to her, while relegating Hermione to a table on the other side of the room and next to Severus Snape. After the initial awkward greeting, the admonishment that she was no longer his student and an adult, therefore first names would be entirely appropriate and the acceptance of apologies on both sides, the two of them had had rather a pleasant meal. The other occupants of their table were too intimidated by them to engage them in conversation and Severus entertained Hermione by telling her secrets and intimate details of nearly everyone in the room. This particular crowd was made up of people mostly under the age of forty and Severus had had the dubious honour of either being a schoolmate or professor of practically all of them. Following that night, Hermione and Severus had reached an understanding of friendly acquaintances if nothing else.

As Hermione settled Jonathan in the tiny cot next to her bed and attended to her own ablutions for the night, she reflected on the limited interactions they had had over the years. Severus was often called in to consult regarding the ingestion or application of rare potions and Hermione had worked with him several times on cases. He was a fixture at anything to do with The Order of the Phoenix, as was she, and so she saw him several times a year at various meetings and gatherings. He had been a guest at her and Ron's wedding, presenting them with a very nice glass cauldron as a gift which she still used. She was vaguely aware that he had also attended Ron's funeral.

 _'At least he is someone I know and can exist with companionably,'_ she thought as she rinsed her mouth. A sudden, vice-like grip caught in her chest as she thought about what might have happened if some other man discovered an unexpected issue on his family tapestry. _'Curse purebloods and their archaic ways,'_ she thought viciously. She supposed that anyone donating sperm would be all right with the knowledge that they were going to be party to creating life, but of course Severus had had no idea. She hoped he would not come down too harshly on the hospital's administrators over this mistake although she was interested to know how it had come about. It was inexcusable behaviour in somebody, but the sleeping babe out there who had already caught her heart would not have existed as he did without it so she could not find it in herself to be wholly condemning.

-oOo-

Early the next morning, Hermione awoke to the fussy cries of her son. With an assurance she had been certain would be lacking in her, she quickly attended to Jonathan's immediate need to be fed. She was halfway through when a Medi-witch checked in on her, the other woman happy to stay with Hermione while she burped Jonathan and changed his nappy. Luckily Hermione had had plenty of experience in wrangling a newborn into a clean nappy and a change of clothes having attended to all the Weasley and Potter babies at one time or another and so the Medi-witch left her alone with an instruction to call her if she needed even the slightest thing. Hermione nodded but was grateful for the solitude which she knew would be all-too-brief. It was Saturday after all and she was fully aware that meant an endless parade of visitors as soon as the hospital opened its doors.

Her prediction proved to be bang on the money as Bill, Fleur and their children popped their heads in the room only moments after nine o'clock, the official time for visitations to commence. Hermione gratefully accepted their gifts and agreed with her gushing sister-in-law that Jonathan was indeed a gorgeous baby. They were the first in a steady stream of early morning visitors—Molly and Arthur came next presenting her with her very own family clock with her and Jonathan's names affixed to the hands. Percy and Audrey arrived with their daughters at the same time as Neville Longbottom and Dean Thomas. Neville informed Hermione that Hannah would be along in the afternoon after the lunch rush. A rather large pile of baby blankets, clothes, toys, hampers and, of course, books, was steadily growing in the corner of her room.

For being handed around as much as he was, Jonathan was surprisingly all right with all the fuss and attention, only crying when his tummy demanded food and his nappy required changing. The witches all laughed at the speed with which the room emptied of wizards as soon as Hermione made a move to feed the baby. Although a little self-conscious, Audrey showed her the best and quickest way to discreetly manage the task, hiding herself under a thin blanket and allowing Jonathan to take his meal at his leisure.

They were followed by several colleagues of Hermione's as they took their breaks in her room. Draco poked his head in just after her own lunch had been served.

"Is everything okay in here?" he asked nervously.

"As well as can be expected, I guess," Hermione said. "You can come in if you like."

"You're not going to slap me?"

"No," Hermione said in exasperation.

"Oh good, I thought you might be a bit upset with me," Draco said.

"Malfoy, I have this beautiful baby because of your suggestion. Surely you are aware that whatever a woman says in the midst of labour is not to be taken seriously."

"I was more concerned with the aftermath."

Hermione narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "What do you know of the aftermath?" she asked.

"I never figured you for someone stupid, Granger. Within five minutes of our first class you had established yourself as the brain. Severus came to see me last night."

"What did he say?" Hermione asked. She was curious to know what his thoughts were following their meeting.

"He was understandably confused and a bit angry at me. I couldn't help my reaction though. No matter what he might have told you, I don't really think it is that funny. It's just the situation, you know? I mean, him, you, a baby… anyone would have reacted the same way."

"What did you do?"

"I laughed my fucking head off! I'm surprised I was coherent enough to be able to send him here."

"Wait—you saw him before he came here?" Hermione asked.

"Yes," he confirmed.

"Damn," she muttered. "I want to know what he's thinking now."

"What happened?"

"Just how close are you to the man?" Hermione asked.

"He is my Godfather—we're close," Draco said.

"Well, he has indicated that he wants to be involved in Jonathan's life." Hermione smirked wickedly. "I guess that means you'll be involved a bit too. You'll have to interact with me in social situations, not just at work."

Draco rolled his eyes. "Yeah, that's going to be a massive hardship. You get on with my wife like a house on fire." Hermione and Astoria had been known to spend entire evenings talking to each other at hospital events. "Can I see the baby?" he asked. Hermione nodded. Gently, Draco lifted Jonathan from the cot by Hermione's bed. "Hello there, I'm your… I don't know what the technical term is—Godbrother? You can call me Uncle Draco if you like. Merlin, he looks like Severus!" Draco commented.

"We know," Hermione said drily, remembering the behaviour of Harry and George the previous evening.

"Well, I'll teach you how to ride a broom and we have a great herd of Pegasii at the Manor. You'll be a natural in no time," Draco said to Jonathan. "Scorpius is only a few months older than you. The pair of you will be peas in a pod—I can see it already. Then, when the two of you get to Hogwarts you can rule Slytherin House together. I can teach you how to do that too." Draco smiled when Jonathan made a noise of satisfaction and drifted off to sleep.

Hermione's eyes widened and her jaw dropped. "This child is going to be the death of me already!" she complained. "He is one day old and it seems like he perfectly understands English!"

Draco laughed softly. "No, he doesn't, Granger. It is just noise to him at the moment. Inflection and tone are the important things."

"It's just that his most 'Snape' moments have been when Harry declared him an honourary Potter, George said he had pranks ready for him and I said he would be in Gryffindor. You talk to him about Slytherin and he acts all happy!"

"The mark of a true Slytherin," Draco praised. He placed Jonathan back in his cot. "Well, I have to get back to work. I'll be back later to do his twenty four hour checks, okay?" Hermione nodded. "Seriously, thank you for listening to Severus and allowing him in. He takes his duty very seriously and he would never shirk it."

"I know," Hermione said. "My stipulation is simply that once the commitment is made then he is in completely. He agreed with that. Do you know what happened with the mix-up?" she asked.

Draco shook his head. "I haven't been down there today. Rumour has it they've locked up the lab and are checking into everything. I am sure I'll be summoned down there at some point but I have all my records ready. I honestly don't know how this happened."

"I guess we'll find out. In a way, it doesn't really matter how, what matters is what happens next," Hermione said.

"Yes," Draco agreed. "By the way, have you chosen a Godfather yet?" Hermione just looked at him with an _'are you kidding?'_ look. "Potter," he said with resignation.

"Who else?" Hermione asked.

"I thought I might have a chance," Draco argued. "After all, Severus is my Godfather and I was the one who suggested the IVF to you."

"Maybe our next one," Hermione said. She immediately blushed when she realised what she said. Draco just laughed and said goodbye.

"Our next one," Hermione muttered to the empty room. "Hormones are playing havoc with my brain function!"

Some more of Hermione's friends and colleagues trickled through when afternoon visiting hours began. It was late in the afternoon when the Potter family made their entrance. Ginny immediately took hold of Jonathan and presented him to James and Albus. James was interested for about two seconds while Albus just stared at the tiny thing and Ginny tried to encourage him to say _'baby'_. Harry in the meantime was wrangling the pram, a baby bag and an Iron Man action figure.

"Can I show her now, Daddy?" James asked.

"Of course you can, Sport," Harry said with a mischievous grin playing about his mouth. He took an envelope out of the bag and handed it to his son who promptly and agilely climbed onto a chair and jumped across to Hermione's bed. As he crawled up to sit next to her he said, "I drawed you a picture, Aunty My-knee."

"Did you?" Hermione asked, feigning surprise. "What did you draw?"

"A picture of your new family," James said proudly. "Daddy said now you have a baby you are a family so I drawed it of you."

"Oh, James, that is lovely of you," Hermione praised him as she opened the envelope and withdrew the picture. Without even looking at it she began to gush over it. "Oh look you drew me and Jonathan and—who is this?" she asked when she focused on it.

For a four-year-old, the drawing wasn't bad. There was a blob with lots of hair that she knew was her and a tiny blob in her outstretched hand which was clearly the baby. She had two legs and two arms and the baby's head was sticking out of what she assumed was a blue blanket. The object of her query was the large, black blob with a huge nose next to her with his hand also outstretched as though he too were holding the baby.

"That's Mister Snape," James told her. "I askded Daddy who was Jo'than's daddy and he said Mister Snape so I drawed him."

Hermione and Ginny both glared at Harry whose gleeful expression quickly turned fearful. He busied himself rummaging through the baby bag looking for _anything_ , suddenly thinking his prank was possibly not the best idea he had ever had. Shaking her head, Hermione bent and gave James a kiss. "Thank you, Sweetums," she said. "This is a lovely drawing and I will stick it on the fridge so everyone can see our first family portrait."

"Yay!" James said, bouncing up and down and clapping his hands. A drawing good enough to go on the fridge was the ultimate compliment to the little boy.

"How will you explain Snape in the position of 'father' then?" Harry blurted.

"It's true, Harry," Hermione answered.

Harry scoffed. "Right, Hermione, Snape is Jonathan's 'dad'," he said, miming air quotes.

"You said he was," James said innocently.

Hermione and Ginny exchanged smirks at Harry's attempt to explain to James that it was all a joke. Deciding to put him out of his misery, even though it would plunge him to a new sort of misery, Hermione said, "It's not a joke, Harry. I saw what you and George saw last night, Jonathan greatly resembles Severus, I don't believe there can be any doubt."

"Hermione," Harry began. He looked at his son sitting on the bed, avidly listening to the adults. "Ginny, maybe you could…" he jerked his chin at the door, signalling for his wife to take their son away. Ginny grumbled but realised this conversation was not for little ears. She handed Jonathan back to Hermione.

"Come on, James, let's go to the shop and buy Aunty 'Mione a cauldron cake," she said, holding her hand out. Albus could be left safely in the pram with his string of toys.

"Mmm, yummy," Hermione agreed, helping a protesting James off the bed. They could still hear him complaining that he wanted to stay as he and his mother walked off down the hall. Harry was sure his wife was grumpily mumbling the same thing.

"Look, Harry," Hermione said before Harry could say a word. "I know you and George were having a laugh last night. It's what we all do." Many a night at the Burrow was spent taking the mickey out of each other, especially if one was able to detect even the slightest rise out of the target of the day. "But last night after you left I saw exactly what you and George saw. The face Jonathan pulled at me was classic Snape, even if his timing was pure Weasley," she muttered.

"What did you say?" Harry asked curiously.

"That he was going to be a Gryffindor," Hermione replied. "The look would have soured milk."

Harry chuckled. "Yep, that would be a horrible fate for a Snape," he agreed. "But, Hermione, at this age babies don't react like that to anything. As you said, it was just timing and the normal muscle spasms and stuff that babies have. It was an anonymous donor; I really, _really_ , do not think that Snape would have wanked into a cup!"

"That's where you're wrong, Harry. After you left last night, he showed up. At first I thought you or George might have said something to him but he told me that Jonathan's name had shown up on his family tapestry. One of his elves alerted him to it and he came here. Given all the evidence, the logical conclusion is that he is Jonathan's father." Hermione let out a small breath of air when she finished.

Harry just gaped at her for several seconds. "But, but… But…" he could not seem to get any other words out.

"But, but, but," Hermione mimicked. "Don't worry, Harry," she said gently. "We talked and he wants to be involved. He wants to take responsibility."

"That makes no sense!" Harry blurted. "Why would you sign up for sperm donation in IVF if you were planning to become 'involved'? His sheet was anonymous, remember?"

"I did not sign up and donate to an IVF programme, Potter," a voice drawled from behind him.

Harry spun around to find the man himself standing stiffly in the doorway, much as he had the previous night when he surprised Hermione. "Then what…?" Harry trailed off his question.

"He participated in the genealogy project, Harry, same as you did." Hermione had cajoled all the males of the family to participate in Draco's study. She gasped as she realised that some of their sperm may have been mixed up in the same way as Severus'.

"Do not concern yourself, Hermione," Severus said, correctly interpreting her worried noise. "I have spent the last several hours with the hospital administrators and members of the DMLE to ensure no other men have had their trust abused in the same manner as me. They identified a further five vials that were where they should not be and the administrators are currently questioning one of the Research Healers. It appears only two other couples have undergone IVF in the intervening time but both of them had their own donors. On the upside, we have been offered monetary compensation by the St Mungo's board that will entirely cover Jonathan's education in the future. They are asking for discretion as well."

Hermione just nodded. Her mind was reeling. Six vials! That was not an innocent mistake; that was intentional. No wonder they were questioning someone. She shuddered to think what would have happened if someone else's vial had been used. What if Harry's or George's or, God forbid, Draco's sample had been mishandled and been the one she had chosen. Although she guessed her joke all those months ago about polluting a pureblood family line would have been especially funny had the line in question been the Malfoys.

"Discretion?" Harry repeated. "Is that wise? Shouldn't this be exposed?"

"No, Harry," Hermione said. "They have determined the only ones affected by it are us and I don't want any sort of scandal that could come back on us in the future and upset Jonathan. The manner of his conception is unusual, I know, but he will never know anything other than love and acceptance from me and, I hope, from his father as well." She paused and saw Severus nod his head, albeit uncomfortably. The man was not one for showing emotion openly after all. "I don't want him thinking he was an accident. He is a gift. Discretion is best, and I still work here as well. We both do, on occasion," she said.

"So what happens now?" Harry asked.

"That is what I am here to discuss," Severus said. The door burst open to admit James and Ginny.

"We got you a strawberry one like you like, Aunty My-knee!" James announced before coming to a halt at seeing the extra occupant in the room.

"Ginevra," Severus greeted with a nod.

"Severus," she replied. "Say hello to Mister Snape," she whispered to James.

"Hullo," James said cheerfully. Severus lifted the corners of his mouth slightly and returned the child's greeting.

"We should go and let you talk," Harry said.

"But, Daddy, I wanted to visit _all day_ and you and Mummy didn't get ready and then we got here and Mummy made me go and get a cake… I want to stay with Aunty My-knee!" James whined.

"James, today is a lesson for you to learn that sometimes we can't always get what we want," Ginny said, kindly but firmly. She and Harry had had a tough time getting things together today; they had intended to visit much earlier than they had. "You have been a good boy while you waited though and good things happen to good boys. Now, we must go and let Mister Snape and Aunty 'Mione talk. I promise you and me will come back as soon as visiting hours start tomorrow. Daddy can get Albus ready and bring him later, all right?"

"But," James started to protest when Jonathan began to cry. James had enough experience with crying babies to know that his Aunty My-knee would not be paying much attention to him for a while. "Okay," he said grudgingly. "I'm going to draw _lots_ of pictures for Aunty My-knee when I get home but!"

"Let's go," Harry said quietly. He gave Hermione a look that promised further discussion at a later date. The Potters left amid Hermione trying out her new discretionary trick of feeding under the blanket. Luckily Severus' attention had been drawn by trying to avoid the pram and the baby bag as Harry and Ginny left the room. By the time he focussed his attention back on her, all he could see was the blanket draped over her shoulder and body, the only evidence of what she was concealing was the occasional movement of Jonathan's head and the soft sounds of him feeding.

Hermione gestured to the lone chair with her free hand. "You may as well sit down," she offered. "We will be here for a while."

"How likely are we to suffer interruptions?" he asked.

"Hmm, you have a point." Hermione grabbed her wand of the nightstand and waved it in a complex pattern at the door. "Standard Healer ward," she explained. "It lets any visitors know the patient can't be disturbed."

"Have you given our situation much thought?" Severus launched right in.

"A little bit," Hermione answered. "There is a lot to take in."

"Yes," he agreed. "I admit I do not really know how to handle this."

Hermione looked sympathetic. She knew what an admission like that would cost him. "I suppose I was thinking of some of the kids I went to primary school with. They would live with their mums and see their dads every second weekend. Maybe in the long term that sort of arrangement would work for us…"

Severus shook his head. "I know what you mean, but that is an arrangement for two people who have found they cannot be in the same room as each other for a prolonged period of time. That is not the case with us and in the short term it is completely irrelevant."

"True, I can't be too far away at any given time," she agreed. Nor would she want to be away from Jonathan for even a second longer than she had to be. Severus raised a fair point as well, they got along quite congenially so they did not really need an arrangement designed to keep them apart.

"I went to Prince Manor early this morning," Severus said. "The head elf there needs to see Jonathan for an anointing ceremony by the way. It just confirms him as a member of the Prince family and its heir." He did not miss the way Hermione tightened her grip on the baby.

"Is it safe?" she asked.

"Perfectly," he replied, trying to keep the rancour from his tone. He knew she was just being a protective mother but did she really think he would place his son—any newborn for that matter—in danger? "It is just the elf laying his hands on him and confirming he is of the Prince line. Something akin to a Muggle christening I suppose."

"I can bring him when we leave the hospital," Hermione agreed.

"Which brings me to my point; the Manor is a bit rundown but I have instructed all four of the elves to begin to restore it. It is quite large. There are six reception rooms plus a large ballroom, an extensive library, which is surprisingly in pristine condition, along with two studies. There are ten bedrooms and several bathrooms. In the cellar is space for a potions lab and there is a wine cellar that has not been touched for decades. If you remember I visited your flat once," Hermione nodded recalling the time Molly had brought him with a freshly brewed Pepper-Up Potion when she had a cold, "and I recall it being quite small."

"Yes, I remember," Hermione said. "And you are right. I was going to start looking for something when Jonathan gets a bit older; for now I thought small would be a bit easier to keep clean."

"Logical," Severus replied. "My own cottage is remote and very small as well. It suits my needs but is no place to even attempt to raise a child. Prince Manor though is quite large enough for the two of us to live in and maintain separate lives if we wish while presenting a stable environment for Jonathan as he grows up with his parents together under one roof. I realise my life so far might lead people to the belief that I am a curmudgeonly bastard but I would not be averse to company. I believe I could live with yours. I have no wish for my son to grow up believing I find him an annoyance or that he is in any way a mistake. I had never thought to find myself in this position, but here we are. I want my child to have the basic things I always wished for myself: a proper home where he feels safe and l-loved."

Hermione sniffed once before tears began escaping her eyes and flowed over her cheeks. _Hormones._ "Severus," she said brokenly. He merely rolled his eyes and handed her a handkerchief. "That was so beautiful, in its own way," she conceded. "I would be happy for us to try that but only once I see the Manor and make certain it is fit for a baby to live in. There won't be any issues regarding me being Muggleborn, will there?" she asked nervously.

"No," Severus assured her. "The Princes regularly welcomed Muggleborns and half-bloods into the family; they just glossed over their origins."

"Oh, I'm sorry, I just thought that given your history…" she trailed off. Severus knew that most members of the Order, Hermione included, were aware of his unsavoury upbringing and the fact that he had had no contact with the Prince family growing up.

"The Princes objected to my father because he was from the lower classes and showed no desire to try and better himself," Severus told her. "My mother rebelled against her parents and refused to let them help her and so condemned us to a miserable life in Cokeworth. Once I became a Death Eater I was shunned lest I discover that the great and powerful pureblooded House of Prince was not so pure after all. The Princes have always prided themselves on never disowning a family member, no matter their transgression, and so the inheritance of the entire estate has fallen to me as the last surviving member of the family. The birthright will now be able to continue for another generation at least."

"I have nothing so tangible of my parents' estate, only a few trinkets and some furniture," Hermione said. "After the war they sold their house and business and invested quite heavily. We can live comfortably off the investments but there is not much I can pass down to Jonathan as a legacy. Are you happy for him to keep his name as it is?" she asked.

"I only know his given name," Severus confessed.

"Jonathan Ronald Granger, after my father and Ron of course," Hermione said.

Severus nodded. "That is acceptable. I have no real desire for the Snape name to live on and the Prince name was already lost to the annals of history. All three names are fine ones he can be proud of. I only ask that you strenuously discourage anyone from ever referring to him as Jonny."

"Like that's ever going to happen," Hermione said with a scoff. "I also already picked his Godparents."

"The Potters, I presume," he said.

"Yes, I asked them months ago and they accepted. I'm sorry, but I cannot un-ask them, nor do I want to," she said with firm resolve.

"I would not expect you to. I briefly had a thought regarding his Godparents last night and assumed they would have already been set. I have no objections. As much as the man annoys me, he is the logical choice given your long friendship. I am Jonathan's father so that makes me more important by default."

Hermione knew his dry sense of humour and just rolled her eyes. "How long do you think before the Manor is ready?" she asked, changing the subject back to the more important matter.

"I would say a month. That would give us enough time to set our other affairs in order and satisfactorily decide on how we will manage this together. Have you told anyone other than Potter?" he asked.

"No," Hermione replied. "I wanted to wait until we had this discussion so we knew what was happening. Malfoy visited and he knew already." Hermione giggled when she heard Severus mutter, _'Laughing hyena.'_ "Oh, where is the Manor anyway?"

"In Cornwall," Severus answered.

"Good, close to Devon," she said absently. "That is the other main thing," she said, looking straight at him. "The Potters and the Weasleys are our family and will remain so. I give you fair warning, and you know Molly well; you will be encompassed as part of the family. It means attending dinners and having visitors over at random. There will also be children in and about the house on any given day. I have no desire to stop this but if the Manor is as big as you say then there shouldn't be any issues."

"I understand," Severus acknowledged. "As long as they stay out of my lab then we will be fine."

"I will ward it myself," Hermione promised.

"That covers living arrangements then. What of parental decisions?" Severus asked.

"I think they are things we will have to deal with as they come up," Hermione said. "I will admit to wanting to send him to Hogwarts when the time comes, if it comes," she amended—Jonathan could prove to have no magic after all. "In the event of him not being magical then I would still want him to attend the best schools. Other than that as long as you agree to encourage, not pressure, and advise, not demand, then we'll just do what every parent tells me they do—make it up as we go along."

-oOo-

The rest of the family took the news of Jonathan's paternity quite well. The overriding opinion was that at least it was someone they knew and respected already. When Molly and Arthur presented him with his very own hand to place on Hermione's clock, he knew he was wholly accepted as part of the family. Years later, Severus would look back on this time of adjustment and wonder how on earth they got through it intact.

By all accounts, Jonathan was an easy baby—he was a good sleeper, generally quite healthy and very happy. Of course, still being a baby, he woke at regular intervals to be fed and changed but Severus and Hermione were quite easily able to cope. The Manor was indeed ready for habitation one month after Jonathan's birth and a busy weekend was spent moving them in. Hermione and Ginny 'supervised' all the workers as they brought in furniture and boxes. Severus spent the time setting up his new lab so he could seamlessly continue to produce the potions required for his business and research. With Hermione's penchant for organisation and Molly's skill in cooking for large crowds, by Sunday evening everyone went home replete and the new family felt like they had lived in the Manor for months.

After ironing out a few wrinkles in regards to personal space and sharing of baby and household duties, Hermione and Severus quickly settled into a routine. They would eat breakfast together before Severus descended into his lab for the day while Hermione would assist the elves with keeping the household running and spend time with Jonathan. Hermione had learned through the intervening years since setting up S.P.E.W. that she was far better off concentrating her efforts on ensuring the fair treatment of elves rather than forcing freedom on them. As much as she was uncomfortable with having the elves working at the Manor, she knew the alternative was not an option.

The easy acquaintance that Hermione and Severus already shared developed quickly to a deep friendship. They were always courteous of each other's feelings and discovered they had quite a bit in common. With Hermione's vast knowledge of healing, she was able to help Severus with several phases of his research as well, letting him know situations where various potions would help and possible reactions patients could have.

Hindsight is twenty / twenty they say, and Hermione and Severus certainly found this to be the case when their friendship progressed to something even more. A compliment here, an affectionate touch there and soon enough they often found themselves lying on the sofa of an evening, Hermione on her side snuggled into Severus while he lay on his back with Jonathan resting on his chest as he read aloud from whatever book or periodical caught their fancy that night.

There were other nights that Severus would find Hermione rocking gently back and forth in the ancient rocking chair that had been unearthed from the attics as she fed their son before bed. Although he had been embarrassed the first few times he had come across Hermione breastfeeding, he soon got used to it when the feisty witch refused the need to be discreet in her own home when there were no visitors. He would take Jonathan from her when he had finished his meal, allowing Hermione to straighten herself up while he burped the baby. They would take turns changing him and stand together, watching as he fell asleep in his cot. More often than not, Hermione would lean against Severus and sigh happily. After a few weeks, Severus began to put his arm around her when she did and they would stay there, just staring at their baby until an outside noise or some movement would break the spell and they would say an awkward goodnight to each other.

The first time Hermione absently pecked Severus on the lips when he reached around her to place a dish in the sink where she was washing up took them both by surprise. It had been an almost instinctive reaction for her the way he had teased her: feinting right then left as to where his bowl was coming from and she laughed, simply grabbing his chin and kissing him before she even thought about it. As soon as she did it, they stared at each other for a few moments before Severus gathered her in his arms and kissed her passionately. Hermione returned his passion with enthusiasm, winding her wet hands around his neck. They pulled back at the same time. Hermione apologised for the little rivulets of water that were running down Severus' back but he could not find it in himself to be upset about it. With a baby boy in the house they had both had worse things covering various parts of their bodies than a little bit of dishwater. As first kisses go, both of them would not have it any other way than what had transpired.

Their romance progressed slowly and mostly behind closed doors—at home and at the Burrow, away from the prying eyes of the Wizarding public. By the time they were ready to take things to the next level, Jonathan was ten months old and spending his first night away from Hermione and Severus. Molly had long established a tradition in the family whereby the weekend before her birthday every year she had all her grandchildren stay the night at the Burrow with her and Arthur. Finding themselves alone, Hermione and Severus had begun the evening with a romantic dinner, followed by their usual routine of cuddling on the sofa while Severus read aloud. It was not long before they were entangled in a passionate embrace.

Hermione learned that night that Severus certainly enjoyed having his balls sucked. When she flipped him and took control, he submitted happily. While she knew that a lot of men shied away from eating a woman out, she had managed to find not one, but two who dove into the activity with enthusiasm.

The inquiry following Jonathan's birth had resulted in the dismissal of the Healer-turned-Medi-witch whose borderline Obsessive Compulsive Disorder tendencies had seen Severus' donation among others so grossly mishandled. Hermione and Severus were adamant that no one ever refer to the incident as a mistake; it had resulted in the birth of their son after all and delivered a happiness that the two of them had thought would never be theirs again.


End file.
